The Silk Road History Essay Example

The Silk Route, one of the world’s longest known trade routes, stretched from China to Europe and from East to West. However, the first caravan journeyed to India in approximately 800 B.C.E and the main trade corridor did not take off until the mid-fifth century C.E when Chinese emperors first started to regulate the trade with foreign countries. Nearly everyone took part in the Silk Route, such as Merchants from as far as Persia, Russia, and Mongolia traveled on the route, bringing silk, gems, spices, medicinal herbs, and rare goods to the markets in China and Europe. These goods were transported on the back of donkeys and camels. The importance of the Silk route has not decreased in the last couple of centuries. The Silk Route in history was one of the most significant trade routes in the world. Before the Silk Road, the majority of trade with Europe would be concentrated in the Mediterranean Sea. Then, China opened the door to Europe and massive trade had emerged. These routes were made up of numerous branches. They carried on items from China, India, Persia, Russia, and Turkey to the Roman Empire, Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Constantinople, Greece, Greece, Italy, Rome, and Spain. The Silk Route also had an indirect impact on European history, due to the Crusades. As they sought to free the Holy Land from the Muslims, the European military expeditions often visited Syria, Turkey, Persia, and China to fight against them. Consequently, they also traded with the peoples of these countries and learned about their cultures and other trade routes. The history of this world trade route goes back to about 2000 years ago. During the 4th century, a period that was characterized by the growth of communication, the Silk Road was opened. A thousand years ago, it was a sea road. It took a minimum of 18 months to travel it from the East to the West. The Silk Road was made up of an uncountable amount of branches. Then, they were the most important economic regions of the Roman Empire. After the fall of the Roman Empire, people were looking for trade routes to reach the East. The Silk Road started at Xi'an, China. From there, it went to Herat in Afghanistan and crossed Persia. Then, it went through Mesopotamia, Syria, and Jordan. It continued in Alexandria, Egypt. In the end, it arrived in the West in Marseille. Now, this area is called the Middle East. The Silk Road was closed in the 16th century by the Ottoman Empire. At that time, it was one of the most important international trade routes. With the arrival of the railroad, they were replaced. However, today, the Silk Road is still on route. The Silk Route was built with two purposes, The first was to export Chinese goods and the second was to trade with other countries, especially with the East since it was a considerable distance from China itself. There are several theories on how the Silk Road was built. One of them is the belief that it was built with people themselves. The theory says that they went from China to the West to settle and found new countries, as well as, to establish new settlements. Another theory says that the first people built this road with the help of God. According to the belief, this way, they wanted to establish a place for worship and make offerings to God. The Silk Road was known as the world's longest highway and its history had a profound effect. They played a significant role in the evolution of civilization, especially in Asia. The Silk Road was a place of different cultures and civilizations which have changed and developed with history.